Primary Research Area

Profile

Education

Doctor of Philosophy, Electrical and Computer Engineering, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, 1991

Master of Science, Electrical and Computer Engineering, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, 1987

Bachelor of Science, Electrical and Computer Engineering, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, 1985

Biography

Prof. Dallesasse has over 20 years of experience in the Optoelectronics Industry, and has held a wide range of positions in technology development and management, including Vice President of MicroLink Devices and Senior Director of Engineering and Technology for Emcore’s Fiber Optics Division. Most recently, he was the Chief Technology Officer, Vice President, and co-founder of Skorpios Technologies, Inc., a venture-capital funded startup that is developing and commercializing silicon photonic ICs based upon a wafer-scale process for selective integration of III-V materials on SOI substrates. His technical contributions include, with Nick Holonyak, Jr., the discovery of III V Oxidation, which has become an important process technology in the fabrication of high-speed VCSELs. Prof. Dallesasse has also been an active participant in the IEEE 802.3 standards effort, and was an important contributor in the definition of the 10GBASE-LX4 port type for use with installed “legacy” multimode fiber.

Teaching Statement

A key attraction of making the transition from a successful career in industry to an academic position is the ability to pass on years of accumulated experience to a new generation. Through the course of my career I have had the ability to mentor many young engineers, helping them grow both personally and professionally. This has been one of my greatest sources of satisfaction, and a key motivation for my career growth into engineering management. There is tremendous satisfaction in seeing a spark of insight turn into a flame of knowledge. Making a positive impact on the lives of others through helping them learn and then seeing the contributions that they, in turn, are able to make provides a fulfillment that cannot be measured.

Research Statement

Photonic integration is a necessity for next-generation optical networks. As the number of applications that demand significant bandwidth increase, the ability of existing networks to serve those needs is compromised. Solutions that enable the existing fiber infrastructure to carry more data, such as advanced optical modulation formats based upon phase-shift-keying and polarization multiplexing, require complex optical transmitters and coherent optical receivers assembled using discrete components. These solutions are too expensive for broad deployment, and face fundamental challenges in reducing system cost. The most promising approach to overcoming these challenges is photonic integration. Both Silicon Photonics and Monolithic Integration on InP face fundamental challenges. Silicon is an outstanding material for complex electronics and waveguides, but its indirect bandgap and weak nonlinear optical properties create challenges with regard to the generation, efficient detection, and active control of light. Compound semiconductor materials, especially those that are lattice matched to InP or GaAs, are outstanding materials for these functions but are costly and not ideal for the fabrication of complex electronics, especially ICs such as network processors. Past attempts to bring these materials together have not progressed past the R&D stage due to limitations in performance, reliability, or manufacturability. Direct epitaxial growth of GaAs or InP on silicon faces the problem of having a high defect-density metamorphic layer that can impact device reliability. Wafer bonding techniques, which have been successfully employed in the LED area as well as in the fabrication of SOI wafers, show promise but also face challenges. Direct bonding at high temperature creates significant stress, as the thermal expansion coefficients of Si and III-Vs are not well matched. This stress has an unacceptable impact on device reliability. Lower-temperature bonding techniques using plasma activation, chemical treatment, or atomically thin interface layers show promise but require further development. An integration approach that recognizes and addresses material compatibility issues and manufacturability should be able to overcome prior barriers to commercialization and enable broad deployment of photonic integrated circuits. What to integrate is also a key area of interest. Recent progress on the Feng-Holonyak Transistor Laser suggests that it may be able to serve as a fundamental device element in photonic-electronic integrated circuits, but further research on device integration is required.

Undergraduate Research Opportunities

The Advanced Semiconductor Device and Integration Group welcomes the participation of undergraduates in the research process through independent study projects, undergraduate thesis projects, and through information working relationships. A limited number of slots are available, but interested individuals are encouraged to contact Professor Dallesasse or one of his graduate students.